Shorts/chamois for long rides

[just eric]

Which shorts / chamois do you find are most comfortable for longer rides or touring?

 

[Flagster]

IMO shorts are like saddles...you have to try them all...

pearl izumi is my favorite...

 

[mtnbike28]

Like Flagster said - try several but Pearl Izumi is my favorite too...
I will pick up a pair of Performance or Nashbar shorts on sale for shorter rides.

Also add chamois cream if you don't already. Lots of riders will use cheaper Udder Baum over expensive stuff.

 

[redneck44]

Gave up on cycling shorts after buying a well fitting saddle.
The saddle I now use for longer rides is a Brookes B17, tokk many years of suffering on lightweight saddles though.

 

[sjxj]

To echo what's been posted, Pearl Izumi is definitely in my bike-clothes drawer, but my Ibex El Fito knickers are really growing on me. I've been logging lots of miles with my sweet denim jorts on my B17's and Cambium (I'm a Brooks convert) when I can, but when the ride is longer than 4 hours, mountain or road, I'll be in cycling specific bottoms. Been trying to get some callouses on my butt. I don't use any chamois cream, though. I don't want to get used to it and need it, like Facebook, tattoos, carbon frames or Doritos.

 

[just eric]

A decent saddle is definitely in my future. I was strongly considering a Brooks Cambium but am currently leaning towards a Rivet Pearl. Still think the extra padding will come in handy until things soften up...

 

[GR8ADV]

Saddle has no bearing on chafing. You can by chamois pull ons that can go under any shorts. I wear this for touring when I want to look normal off the bike.

 

[MANUCHAO]

when I want to look normal off the bike.

Now that's funny......., but I can relate

 

[Christophe Noel]

Every manufacturer's chamois shape is different. I do like Pearlizumi, but have owned probably 40 pairs of Pactimo shorts over the last ten years. Team issue stuff, so I wasn't given a choice. It has been a great chamois, but I think my personal overall preference is Sugoi.

You'll find that not all chamois and seats work well together, so selecting a combo that works best takes some experimenting.

 

[keezer37]

I tried a pair of Louis Garneau's once and damn near had to walk back to my truck. Perhaps it was the shorts and my riding position. Perhaps it is my anatomy. Perhaps the chamois thickness coupled with the seat angle. I don't know but it wasn't long before circulation was cut off to a most critical area. It was so painful (and rather frightening), that I had/have no intention of playing the game of endless painful adjustments and ruined bike rides trying to get it right.

Just a Brooks Flyer, Exofficio boxer briefs and any workout shorts.

 

[Flagster]

Saddle has no bearing on chafing.

do not agree...contact area/location of contact of a saddle and location and thickness of seams and chamois thickness all have a significant impact on chafing...if you are talking pure contact between chamois and your man/girl parts then I agree but butter is the only remedy for this...

 

[p nut]

I've had Pearl Izumi, but couldn't find it comfortable after 40-50 miles. I've been wearing Boure Elite shorts for the past few years and they have been awesome.

http://www.boure.com/

 

[Christophe Noel]

Just another saddle/chamois tip: For longer multi-day rides I will often bring a second pair of shorts, but one with a different chamois shape. If mid-trip I develop saddle discomfort, swapping to a different chamois shape often relieves those sore spots.